The Dead Wastes

[Macman253]

The world has ended, twenty years ago. A virus struck the planet. turning

all that died into zombies and those already dead. Society was destroyed in the in fighting of survivors aswell as the dead. Most of the major cities are merely giant dead-filled cities. Commuters are folks that live in small cities that dot the Dead Wastes. usually xenophobic but some are known for being open trade routes. Radiation is a big killer but only limited areas have lethal doses of radiation. The worlds superpowers decided to respond to the zombie threat when their soldiers were dying and then coming back to eat their brothers in arms. They nuked London, Moscow,Paris,New York, Washington DC and Los Angeles. The remaining major cities besides Denver, Dallas, Chicago and Seattle are confirmed to be in survivor occupation. The remaining capitals are assumed to be under zombie control.

 

New Orleans is now called The Dead-City. Scavengers often raid this city but because half the city is flooded and the other half is covered in the dead.

 

Pittsburgh also known as The Pitt. Its owned by a raider chief named The Lord. His raider tribe is full of psychos and rape-gangs. the city is a den of vice and misery but anyone that is tough enough can make a good living there.

 

Seattle. This city is watched over by The Council. Most of seattle is a heap of rubble but the skyrises that dot its landscape is considered the major Hub in which people survive. There the Chairmen send out mercenary Reclamation Teams to scour the countryside. Raiding abandoned towns for supplies. Seattle has earned the renown for being a haven to anyone that can make the journey.

 

Denver is the most secure city from the plague. But it's also extremely difficult to gain acceptance. The denizens of Denver are violently xenophobic. Often raiding nearby towns, occupied with the dead and living. They have also been known to enslave other survivors to keep their population in control or as a work force.

 

 

 

In this hellish world, you are a Waster. A person that wanders the Dead Wastes looking for Fortune, Food or Safety, Either way you are a survivor or your not. Choose your profession, take up your gun and your Survival Guide and take to the horizon.

 

 

The Survival Guide:

 

A book was printed sometime after the zombie plague that found its way into refugees hands, people were clinging to it more then they were bibles. Most Wasters have one and those that don't are usually dead. Printed on the first page is the ten rules to survival.

 

#1: Get A Gun, keep it clean and conserve ammo.

 

#2: Carry enough food and water for yourself and one other for five days.

 

#3: Water, Bullets and Food are worth more then money.

 

#4: Assume the other traveller is going to rob you and kill you. He most likely is.

 

#5: Do NOT Risk Your Life For Foolish Reasons.

 

#6: Do NOT bury the dead, put a bullet in their head and no matter how hungry you are never eat a corpse of a human. Even if its cooked.

 

#7: Scavenge what you can before you leave. Get some kind of transport and sleep only during the day. Zombies are less active during the day, they also see a third as far their eyes cannot handle sunlight.

 

#8: If you find a group of refugees lead them to the nearest town that you know is safe. Either point them the way or take them with you. Caution, Be Sure They Are Refugees.

 

#9: Get a buddy, they will watch your back and be a second gun incase you are surrounded.

 

#10: Dog meat is safe, the infection only transfers to humans.

 

 

Walkers (Zombies)

 

Walkers are the walking dead. They are NOT like you see in movies. Walkers generally shuffle around but if they spot prey they will break out into a sprint but they cannot sustain this so you can outrun them. Also Walkers freeze if you shine light into their eyes. Giving you precious seconds to run or pull your gun so Always keep a flashlight with batteries.

Aim for the heart or the head, anywhere else and you become Walker-Chow. Walkers hunger for human flesh, they tend to ignore other animals but if they are hungry enough they will try and eat other things. Another thing, Walkers cannot distinguish between human stink and rotting flesh. But they can smell soaps and other body cleaning products. So bathe when you are safe but when you are out in the wastes its safer to go without a bath.

 

 

The Waster:

 

The Waster is a person that doesn't want to, can't or isn't yet a member of a city or community. They are drifters. Often coming into a town to trade and seek safety. Many are hired by the leader of the village to perform tasks that they cannot do themselves or will not do in exchange for food or lodgings.

 

The Commuter:

 

A Commuter is a person that lives entirely in a small community of people. They are the farmers, survivors and refugees that have founded a community out of the wreckage of the old world. Most often they take over small towns and wall them off, living inside during the night and working the fields for food during the day.

 

The Raider:

 

Raiders are people who took to pillaging and raping the landscape, they steal, burn and loot everything they can. Usually moving in groups of 3-8 and they often jury-rig a vehicle to carry them great distances to do their foul deeds. Its widely known that Raiders own the highways. If your brave enough to travel on them you wont find Walkers but you'll find a all new kind of trouble.

 

The Hubber:

 

A Hubber is a person that lives in a Hub, a Hub is a beacon of trade and commerce in the wasteland. Often a capital city or large city that is ruled over by a despot or council of some kind. There thousands of people scratch out a living under the gaze of mercenaries and assault rifles and surrounded by the stench of desperation and the electric hum of electrified fencing.

 

 

 

The Rules Of The Game:

 

Do Not Godmod (I.E. I shoot all the walkers with my .22 pistol)

 

Do Not Control Another Charecter/Player That Isn't Apart Of Your Story.

 

You Do Not Start With A) A Car B) Tons Of Ammo C) Tons Of Food.

 

Be Realistic.

 

Have fun.

Edited September 6, 2012 by Macman253

[tokyobiohazard]

This sounds like my cup of tea, honestly... I happened to gaze in here by chance today, and I'm glad I did. What kind of character sheet layouts are you looking for? I'm definitely going to join up if you'll have me.

[mythicdawnmaster]

So what time period is this one set? I know it says 20 years ago, but 20 years back from when? Like, now 2012? Just so i know what kind of character i can have, and what equipment they possess.

 

This is rather different to anything else i've been in, so i might just give it a try.

[Macman253]

The period its set in is 2032, certain things are different. Most weapons and vehicles remain the same. I did this to allow people to sorta free form their equipment. To encourage roleplaying. And for your loving pleasure there are energy weapons in the form of particle (rail) technology. Magnetic energy used to sling projectiles at near 10x speed of a high velocity bullet. But they require a powerpack on your back and are prone to malfunction. Most vehicles that predate 2015 are non functional but after that point due to political climate and lack of fuel the machines are electric/hybrid and some military vehicles are EM shielded so they survived.

 

 

 

The charecter sheet looks like this.

 

 

 

 

Name:

 

Gender:

 

Race:

 

Description:

 

Weight:

 

Equipment: (1 set of clothing, a weeks worth of food and water, two weapons with 10 magazines of ammo or 15 shots. Some medical gear and a full set of camping gear (cooking utinsels, bedroll, campfire kit and survival tools) Backpack, spade, and the ever useful Towel)

 

Occupation: (Scavenger, Reclamator, Bounty Hunter)

 

Birthplace: (Post or Pre Outbreak)

 

Attributes:

 

Skills:

 

Background:

 

(Your attributes start at a value of 5 each, you can remove one point in one attribute and place it anywhere else. You have 4 neutral attributes which can be used to add anywhere. The maximum for an attribute is 15)

 

Strength (Carry more equipment, move heavy objects easier and swing melee weapons harder)

 

Perception (Better ranged accuracy, higher sense of smell, hearing and sight)

 

Endurance (More resistant to Infection, damage and pain)

 

Charisma (How charming or good looking you are. With males if your endurance is over 7 add a plus one to charisma)

 

Intelligence (How smart you are, better at hijacking vehicles, hacking computers or repairing technology)

 

Agility (How nimble you are, how fast you run and how well your reaction is)

 

Luck (pretty self explanatory, high luck means odd things happen to people who wish you harm, how good you are at gambling. And allows you to commit a "lucky shot" when doing an action. IE Escaping walkers by jumping over a ravine in a car. low luck can be just as beneficial....sometimes. Low luck people can project their bad luck. Their foes can make mistakes that cost them the advantage in a fight but you also make a mistake that lowers your advantage. For example. A man tries to rob you and as you back up in fear the magazine of his gun slips out giving you time to draw your pistol and kill him but the recoil of the gun took you by surprise and smacked you in the nose and breaks it.)

 

You also possess three Trade Skills. Example: You are a bounty hunter, your trade skills are Guns, Survival, Unarmed combat. Your trade skills advance by 5 everytime you Advance. Higher your intelligence more Trade skills you have. +1 trade skill for every 2 points in intelligence above 5.

 

Basic Skills, in addition to Trade skills you have Basic skills. These are your secondary skills. You gain 4 basic skills. They increase only through Leveling or Use.

 

The skills are as follows:

 

Guns

 

Dodge

 

Legerdemain (Pickpocketing and Sleight Of Hand)

 

Repair (Vehicles, cars, guns and toasters.)

 

Hacking (Accessing computers, dealing with computers in general)

 

Survival (Food foraging, tracking, skinning and butchering animals etc)

 

Unarmed combat

 

Melee combat

 

Running

 

Explosives (Handling explosives, disarming traps and mines)

 

Medicine (treating wounds, performing surgery and recognizing various chemicals)

 

Scavenging (General finding for goods. Example: You walk into a liquor store. You decide you want a bottle of jack daniels. That is scavenging. The better your skill the more likely you are to find something great.)

 

Barter (better you are at trading)

 

Bluff (Better you are at talking your way out of situations, or talking your way into a hookers bed without paying =)

 

 

All of your skills have a value so write them down somewhere. Your skills start off at 25 unless they are trade skills which go to 35. You increase skills by committing certain actions. Example: You scavenge through a pile of junk and manage to find a working flashlight, you decide to continue searching and find batteries. Youve gained +1 point in scavenging.

 

Now you can choose to do this via a charecter sheet by using skill values. Doing this allows you to maintain and create a indepth and independant character. For example. You really want a person that is a survivor. So you shun people and make your own way. You live by surviving on the land during the day and hunkering down in a self made shelter at night.

Treat this style of play as a ongoing self generated character. This way allows you to create your own character and his/her story in this future.

 

Or you can play a character on (Easy Mode) and not roll dice or use these skills really and just go off the main idea of the character. I preferably go for the former option because it is much more fun. Instead of being a all-the-time badass you can be the guy that has moments of terror and true near death experiences. Not the guy that always knows whats to do and always wins. Its called godmodding in some occassions but people prefer the easy style of play because it requires less thought and concentration but it also makes the charecter a Build N Burn. You make it because its cool and then you burn it when the story is over. The latter style is that. a lot of fun for awhile but in the end they burn out quick. A Charecter you build is one you cherish and remember.

 

Advancing (Leveling) there is no level cap but you advance after gaining 15 skill points in any field. Trade skills are harder to develop but they profit more towards your skill points when you do. When you Advance you gain 5 skill points to adjust anywhere you wish in your trade skills and basic skills. When you advance you also gain one Attribute point. To spend anywhere you choose.

 

How Your Charecter Progresses:

 

You ARE the writer, each and every character is written by YOU, noone else. Your story is how you make it in the setting provided. Now im not saying you can't change things but to change everything you need to work at it as a goal and with help from others (Player help only, the only time you require other players) But a goal like that is lofty and cannot be dealt with in 5 turns. A goal to cure the Infection requires time and supplies you cannot normally get on your own. Your goal is going to be very very very very far down the road. Your Goal will be the reward for the completion of a hundred minor objectives. Some you can do on your own others must require help from NPCs or players. (with their approval) And they have to dedicate a number of turns (Replies) to helping you. They can do out of their good will or for profit on their own end.

 

The Rules Of Infection:

 

Im sure this is a topic everyone is curious about. So ill explain, you can be bitten by a Walker and NOT turn into one. 9/10 you turn but if you can survive the bite, the infection and fever that usually kills the infected you are immune to the virus from them on. Now to make things clear, this event is only availible if your Endurance attribute is 8 or higher, otherwise if your bitten your screwed. Fighting the infection can be done at anytime but those with a remote chance of survival require Endurance 8 or better.

 

Types of Walkers.

 

Walkers are not just zombies, the infection has given rise to certain types.

 

Shuffler: Basic zombie, tough can only be killed by extreme force or headshot.

 

Runner: Fast moving, they are easy to trick but they can run for quite some distance.

 

Sniffer: Blind, but they have great sense of smell and hearing. If you do not move or make any noise they will lose

interest and leave.

 

Thinker: Thinkers are very very rare. They are not easily tricked. All walkers will stare at bright lights. (Fog lights, flares flashlights and Fireworks) Until the light source extinguishes. Thinkers do not do this and as long as a thinker is present neither do other Walkers.

 

Gnawler: A Gnawler is an ape or monkey that is infected. They move in packs and are extremely dangerous but they are fairly rare. Easy to kill but they range in the great many. They CANNOT infect you if your bitten. But they can overwhelm you and rip you apart.

 

Crusher: Crusher is a gorilla that is infected, they like Gnawler's cannot infect you but the infection has given them extremely strong skin and bones. Large caliber rounds suggested when facing them but they are extremely rare.

 

End Note:

 

Ive devised these rules to allow for more fun for everyone that doesn't take away from the game. So please do not abuse them. Create your character, make your way in the desolate future that is the Dead Wastes.

Edited September 9, 2012 by Macman253

[Flipout6]

Ooh, this looks good. Gonna take me a bit to think of a character, though.

 

What about amputation? Say you're bitten on the hand and you cut it off immediately, or the arm from the elbow down a few minutes later?

Edited September 9, 2012 by Flipout6

[nethgros]

I saw somewhere in there something about rolling dice, how would that work?

[Macman253]

http://rolz.org/

 

 

Just use D20.

 

 

This is how this works. You take your skill value. Say your skill in medicine is 29. You roll a d20 and you get a 10.

Your total score is 39 now that isn't bad but for your action which is amputating your arm you will make it. But your going to need something for a tourniquet and some power painkiller. Should be in your medical kit. you tie off and dose yourself. You now have to roll an endurance test. Your endurance is 7. You roll a d20 and you get a critical of 20 (Nat 20) that makes your score from 27 to 47 (Effectivley doubles the outcome) you cut through your arm without having issues and you manage to cut it just enough that you can get a replacement prosthetic arm without complication.

 

 

Prosthetic Limbs.

 

I forgot to add this in my last post. Prosthetic limbs are mechanical limbs. They are commonplace but they have drawbacks. They need to be maintained, if they aren't well maintained they will make noise and sometimes malfunction or not work all together. Also the human body can only sustain so much. The nervous system can only translate to a maximum of three limbs. Past that point youll suffer a superb Agility and Intelligence loss because of Cerebral Shock.

 

 

Getting Auto-Limbs.

 

Hubs and some other places like trading centers have Auto-Clinics. Places where your Auto-Limbs are bought, implanted and maintained. They generally come at a hefty price and since currency has no value you'll have to take out a work debt. Someone will front the bill for you as long as you perform tasks for them for a selected number of years. But there are some few Auto-Clinics that will perform the surgery for free or cheap.

 

Aftermarket Auto-Limbs.

 

There are a number of Aftermarket Modifications to Auto-Limbs, nicknamed After-Mods. They include geiger counters, retractable knives, small pistols, tools, blow torches and almost everything else under the sun. Generally to get those you gotta go see a Mechanic. All auto-limbs with a basic mod receiver can hold up to four mods.

[mythicdawnmaster]

I don't mean to sound mean or anything, but i would like to offer some advice, simply because i have been RPing for quite some time now, and i have seen many Rp's come and go, and witnessed quite a few not even take off from the ground.

 

My advice would be, scrap the leveling system, in general, they really don't work, as an Rp is meant to be a story, real people don't have leveling points and such, and it would be very hard to incorporate it into an Rp in a way that wouldn't be a complete and utter pain, the idea of characters developing is indeed a good one, every rp should have characters develop, but having them start with attributes, earn points and such while Rping makes things very difficult, and extremely complicated.

 

But, this is your RP, i'm just offering a little advice. :thumbsup:

[Macman253]

I don't mean to sound mean or anything, but i would like to offer some advice, simply because i have been RPing for quite some time now, and i have seen many Rp's come and go, and witnessed quite a few not even take off from the ground.

 

My advice would be, scrap the leveling system, in general, they really don't work, as an Rp is meant to be a story, real people don't have leveling points and such, and it would be very hard to incorporate it into an Rp in a way that wouldn't be a complete and utter pain, the idea of characters developing is indeed a good one, every rp should have characters develop, but having them start with attributes, earn points and such while Rping makes things very difficult, and extremely complicated.

 

But, this is your RP, i'm just offering a little advice. :thumbsup:

 

 

I admit you have a point. That is why you can choose not to go by this system. the leveling and skills and attributes are not mandatory. You can choose to use it if you want but if you choose you can. It just adds depth to the game thats all its for. You can create your character anyway you wish, within reason. Play how you wish, again within reason. If you want to use the leveling system to give your character more feel go for it but if you want to just have fun and write the character's story Go for it! Noone said you had to use the SPECIAL system (Yes i ripped that off from fallout, sue me)

[tokyobiohazard]

I've got to say, I've never played a PnP game in my life, so this is like a foreign language to me. I don't quite understand this at all. ^^; Isn't it to be like, "You see a walker twenty feet away and pull out a pistol.", then you have to like roll and depending on what you roll, that's what the character does? Like, how do we know someone won't cheat since we aren't all next to each other? I've just never done this before and it sounds quite fun... I want to understand it.